Abstract

Flooding has become one of the leading disasters worldwide. In Kenya, the flooding events are influenced by a
wide range of factors, including the overflow of rivers, flash floods, coastal floods, floods as a result of
unprecedented amounts and intensity of rainfall, inadequate or lack of drainage systems and in some cases, human
interference with drainage basins, riparian zone and watersheds. Flooding has a wide range of health consequences
such as drowning, injury, outbreak of gastroenteritis, respiratory infections, poisoning, communicable diseases,
epidemic diseases such as cholera, diarrhoea, and dengue fever, poor mental health, and disability, among others;
however, the focus of this paper is on infectious diseases. Flooding alters the balance of the environment and often
creates a conducive environment for the development of pathogens and vectors. The diseases that are most likely
to be affected by flooding are those that require vehicular transfer from host to host (waterborne) and or a
host/vector as part of its life cycle (vector-borne). In addition, flooding may hinder access and provision of urgent
medical services to suppress the spread of infectious diseases leading to a wider spread. In light of the increased
threat of flooding due to amplification by climate change, there is need for a better understanding of the
association and underlying dynamics of outbreak of infectious diseases following flooding to inform policy.